Would You Be More Careful If It Was You Who Got Pregnant?

Would You Be More Careful If It Was You Who Got Pregnant?

Women's Liberation

This is a reprint of a pro-birth control poster originally created by photographer, Alan Brooking, art director, Bill Atherton, and copywriter, Jeremy Sinclair, who all worked for Cramer Saatchi advertising agency in Britain. The poster provocatively asks men, "Would you be more careful if it was you who got pregnant?" Many people found the poster shocking and some offensive when it first appeared. Contraception was a much-debated subject and not usually on display in public spaces. The image itself also challenged popular notions of masculinity. These shock tactics effectively drew men's attention to the issue of unwanted pregnancy and has become a famous example of the power of advertising. The poster has been reconceptualized and reused a number of times since the 1960s-era.

photographer, Alan Brooking, art director, Bill Atherton, and copywriter, Jeremy Sinclair, who all worked for Cramer Saatchi advertising agency in Britain

Roz Payne

Center for Digital Research in the Humanities, University of Nebraska-Lincoln

1969

poster